Apparatus for ore concentration.



APPLICATION FILED DEC.27, 19H.

Patented 001' 15, 1918.

2 SHEETSSHEET F. GROCH.

APPARATUS FOR ORE CONCENTRATION.

APPLlCATlON FILED DEC.27..19l7- m m mwz J m ,1 u n 6 6 0 m 6 4w 1 t m 3 i 2 3 J 2 5 15 If I attozn a q:

FRANK (moon, OFCOBALT, ONTARIO, CANADA.

" APPARATUS FOR om; CONCENTRATION.

To all whom it may cbncerni Be it known that I, FRANK GROCH, a citizen of the United States, residing in Cobalt, in the Province of Ontario and. Dominion of Canada, have invented certain new andeffecting the concentration of ore by the flotation process in which foam is produced in the metal carrying pulp, which foam supports the metallic particles while the gangue is allowed to settle.

The primary object of the present inven tion is to provide means which efiects a more thorough comminglin of the pulp and foam-producing materials, this means being of a decidedly simple character, but thoroughly practical in operation. In the accompanying drawings v Figure 1 is a vertical cross sectional viewthrough the preferred embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 isa detail sectional view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, at right angles thereto, showing a battery of two cells of a flotation apparatus. H

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view on an enlarged scale through the impeller. Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view therethrough. I Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view of a portion of the structure.

Similar reference numerals designate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

Ih the embodiment illustrated, atank or reservoir is employed, designated generally by the reference numeral 5, and is provided at its opposite sides with launders 6 separated from the interior of the tank 5, by overflow lips 7. 'These launders are for the purqpose of receiving the froth or foam and the .tank, and forming a channel 12 which is in u communication with the compartments 13 on 9. The upper ends of the partitions 8 extend above the level of the overflow lip 7 and areconcentrates carried thereby. The interior of the tank is sub-divided by vertical partitions 8 into an-agitation compartment-9 having-a bottom 10 above the main'bottom 11 of the opposite sides of the agitation compartment provided with outwardly and upwardly incline'd slots 14; Y v v. In the embodiment disclosed, two cells Specification of Iletters Patent.

mamas-a151, ms.

Application filed December 27, 1917. Serial No. 209,117.

constructed as above described areprovided, but it will be evident that any number may smarfi i F W.

be utilized, all preferably correspondingin structure and arrangement. I

A suitable supporting frame 15 extends beams 16 carrying journal boxes 17, in

which are mounted vertical tubular shafts 1 18 having suitable driving means, as for example, pulleys 19. The lower ends of the over the cells and includes a pair of parallel V shafts 18 extend downwardly into there- I spective agitation compartments 9 and supwalls.21 and ,22 arranged in reversed relation, thereby providing'a body that tapers toward its periphery, the upper wall having a hub 23 that receives the lower end of the shaft 18 and provides an axial vertically -disposed inlet opening 24. The lower wall 22 has a depending boss, 25 having an opening 26 providing an axial inlet through the lower wall. -1Interposed between the upper and lower walls and spaced from both is a horizontal partition plate 27 that, divides the interior of the impeller into an upper compartment 28 and a lower compartment- 29. This partition'terminates short of the periphery of the body, so that the two com' port at vtheir 'lower ends impellers, desigated-generally by the reference numeral 20.

partments are in communication with each other at their outer portions,.but within the body 'of'the impeller and adjacent to the peripheral outlet opening 30. Curved impellerb-lades 31 are located in each compartment and are preferably inalinement,.

these blades having their inner ends 32, either. alined with the walls of they inlet openings 24 'and26 or not, their outer ends extending beyond the partition 27 and terminati'ng at the periphery .of the body. 5

In actual practice, the tubular shafts'constitute air or gasv inlet meansto the impeller and pipes 33 are also employed for delivering oil to the upperends of. these shafts. The lower. gudgeons 25, as willbe clearby ref'- erence to Figs. 1 and 2 are in communica'-. tion with the lower channels 12.

' Briefly outlined, the action of the appav ratus is as follows. The tanks or reservoirs being supplied with 'the pulp and water.

from any suitable source, the shafts 18 and consequently the impellers -20 are given rapid rotation. As a consequence the 'impeller blades in the lower chambers 29 will cause an upward flow of the mixture through the inlet openings 26 and expel it with great force outwardly through the peri heral ropening 30. The impeller blades in t 'e upper chamber effect a like movement of the air or gas and oil delivered downwardly through the tubular shafts 18, and this ac tion is. greatly assisted by the liquid discharged from the lower compartment, which agitation compartment 9 above the impeller 20 and below the level ofthe liquid, these blades being fixed, and absolutely, overcoming the tendency of the liquid to swirl within the compartments. i

It willbe evident that this apparatus is relatively simple, and experience has demonstrated that it has a high 'rate of efliciency in atomizing, agitating, dissolving and emulsifying oils and gases in solutions agitate and float or dissolve the chemicals from which mineral particles, metallic or other valuable substances are thereby extractcd and recovered either b 1 floating or by precipltatlng them. It wil be under-% stood that this is due in great measure to the particular structure of the impeller whlch foroesthe air orv gas'into the pulp to and metals from the pulp, it being also use ful for forcing gases into a solutiofiin which the chemicals are dissolved for the purpose 1 of precipitating these chemicals.

In In application for Patent No. 107 ,434, filed Ju y 3, 1916, and in the division thereof filed July 29, 1918, No. 247155,-1 show an apparatus for concentrating ores comprising a tank and a rotary'memberv which is provided with a setof passages extending from its central portion toward its periphery, and a hollow member through which said passages. arev in communication with the atmos here above the liquidwhich the tank is a apted to contain and another set of similar passages having both ends in communication with the liquid in the tank. Said application also shows a rotary head having a set of passages for'gas or air ex.- tendin outwardly from the center toward the perlphery of the head, and a set of liquid passages also extending toward the perlphery, all of said passages being open at both ends. The rotary head conslsts of an im-' peller somewhat similar to that herein shown and described, having axial inlet ports in its opposite walls and a discharge opening, a partition within the impeller in spaced relation to the opposite walls thereof, andimpeller blades on opposite sides of the partition. 1 do not claim such subject matter in the present application, said subject matter being claimed in my application Serial No. 247,155 filed July'29," 1918, which is a division of my application No. 107,434, filed July 3, 1916.

No claim is made herein to the construction and arrangement of the bafiie plates 34 shown in the accompanying drawings or their combination with other features of the invention herein shown, as claims thereto are made. in my copending application Serial'No. 219,996, filed Mar. 2, 1918. What I claim is 1. An impellerof the character set forth, comprising a rotatable hollow body having axial inlet ports in its opposite walls and a peripheral discharge opening, a partition within the body in spaced relation to the opposite walls thereof and terminating short of the periphery, and impeller blades on I opposite sides of the partition extending beyond the periphery of said partition and terminating substantially even with the pe-- ripheral discharge of said hollow body.

,2. An impeller of the character set forth, comprising a rotatable hollow body having axial inlet ports in" its opposite walls anda peripheral discharge opening, a partition within the body in spaced relation to the opposite walls thereof and terminating short of the periphery and dividing said hollow body into compartments, and impeller blades in at least one of the compartments, said blades extending beyond the partition.

3. An impeller of the character set forth,

comprising a rotatable hollow body having axial inlet ports in its opposite walls and a peripheral discharge opening, a partitionwithin the body in spaced relation to the opposite walls thereof and terminating short 0 the periphery and dividing said hollow body into compartments, and impeller blades in bothcompartments extending beyond the partition. I i

4. An impeller of thecharacter set forth, comprising a rotatable hollow body, the

chamber of which is provided with outwardly convergent walls having their peripheries spaced apart to form an outlet and each wall having an axial inlet, a partition between said inlets terminating short of the peripheral outlet, and blades for compelling an inward flow of materials through the inlets, said blades extending beyond the partition for insuring the commingling of such materials within. the outlet of the impeller and their subsequent expulsion through the peripheral outlet.

5. An .impeller of the character set forth, comprising a rotatable hollow body the chamber of which is provided with substantially conical walls arranged in opposing relation, each wall having an axial inlet opening, a partition interposed between the walls in spaced relation thereto and terminating short of their peripheries, and impeller blades on at least one side of the partition projecting beyond the edge of the same.

' 6. An impeller of the character set forth, comprising a hollow body the chamber of which is provided with oppositely disposed substantially conical walls that converge toward their peripheries, each wall having an axial inlet, a partition located between the walls andspaced from both, forming opposite compartments with which the inlets re spectively communicate, the periphery of said partition terminating short of the peripheries of the Walls, and impeller blades located in both compartments and extending beyond the periphery of the partition substantially to the peripheries of the walls.

'7. An impeller of the character set forth,

comprising a hollow rotatable body having opposite independent axial inlet openings for materials of different characters and a common peripheral outlet, means within the body for creating an indraft through both inlets upon the rotation of the body, the commingling of the materials within said body and their expulsion incommingled condition through the peripheral outlet.

8. An impeller, comprising a rotatable hollow body having axial inlet ports inits opposite walls and a peripheral discharge opening, a partition within the hollow body dividing the space between the walls into compartments and which terminates short of the periphery of the hollow body, impeller blades in a least one of said compartments extending beyond the periphery of the partition, a rotary hollow shaft to which the hollow body having inlet axial ports in its opposite Walls and a peripheral discharge opening, a partition within the hollow body dividing the space between the walls into compartments and which terminates short of the periphery of the hollow body, impeller blades in at least one of said compartments extending beyond the periphery of the partition, a chamber for containing a liquid in which said impeller operates, a rotary hollow shaft extending above the liquid level to which the hollow body is secured and through which air is drawn to one of the compartments, and means for feeding a liquid to the other compartment of said hollow body.

10. An impeller, comprising a hollow body having oppositely disposed walls provided with axial inlets and spaced at their peripheries to form a peripheral outlet, a partition between and spaced from said walls, said partition terminating short of the periphery of the body, and impeller blades on opposite sides of said partition and extending beyond the edge thereof to form a mixing chamber within the outlet and beyond the partition.

11. An impeller, comprising a hollow body having opposite axial inlets and provided with an intermediate partition dividing the same .into independent chambers, said partition terminating within the body of the impeller,-and blades on opposite sides of the partition extending beyond the edge of the same and terminating substantially even with the impeller body for compelling an independent flow through each of said inlets and then forcing the same outwardly through both of the chambers, the discharge from one of said chambers passing across the discharge fromthe other of said chambers to produce an aspirating action on the contents thereof.

In. testimony whereof I have hereunto subhollow body is secured and through which. scribed my name.

air is drawn to one of the compartments, and means for feeding a liquid to the other compartments.

9. An impeller, comprising a rotatable FRANK GROCH.

Witnesses:

I GEO. MITCHELL,

W. N. MOORE. 

